The present invention relates generally to a technique for printing a print job, and more particularly to determining the cost of printing materials used in printing the print job.
Current electronic reprographic systems are capable of counting pages within a print job. These systems comprise accounting mechanisms for computing the number of pages that are printed for customer records or for billing purposes.
Current counting systems may operate in a number of different ways. One common method of counting is for the reprographic system to count electronic pulses during the copying process. Other systems require cards or cassettes to be inserted into the reprographic system for recording the number of copies made while the card or cassette is inserted in the machine.
The following references relate to printing systems which allow for statistical tabulation of customer print jobs: